Certain medical conditions require that individuals feed using direct enteral nutrition, also referred to as use of feeding tubes. It is estimated that in excess of 350,000 persons of all ages use enteral nutrition in the home setting. Many of these conditions allow the individual to maintain an active lifestyle that can include career, schooling, active hobbies, and even physically demanding sports.
Unfortunately, the current method of gravity bolus (batch) feeding is not consistent with dynamic lifestyles; primarily as it is neither practical nor portable. Many individuals are bolus tube fed multiple (5+) times per day by use of a 2 ounce syringe that is filled and allowed to gravity drain into the feeding tube. When the 2 ounces are emptied, another 2 ounces are poured into the syringe. This process is repeated until a full feed (e.g., about 8 ounces) is administered. Problems with existing systems include the size of the syringe, which has a small mouth making it difficult to fill and also requires several refills for each feed. In addition, syringes are not designed for pre-loading, storage, or transport for convenient feeding away from home as once filled, the syringe must be held upright to prevent spilling of contents.
What are needed in the art are enteral feed cups that can provide more convenient and easier feeding for individuals. For example, an enteral feed cup that can be self-standing to allow for filling, storage, and use in any location would be of great benefit.